Reactor



W. El. KRRK Filed om 9, 1925V 2 Swag-Smm l Patented Oct. 4, 1927.

UNITED STATES P .A T

BEACTOR.

Application tiled October 9, 1925. Serial No. 61,5231.

The invention relates to improvements in the construction of reactors ofhigh current and KVA capacity such as are utilized in circuits ofalternating current generators or between different sections .of thebusses connected with such generators.

The invention aims to provide an improved type of reactor which for agiven capacity occupies less space than reactors heretofore used andalso aims to provide an improved winding supporting structure in whichthe bolts `are placed radially with respect to the axis of the windingand so disposed that there is practically no chance of the boltsproviding a path for short circuiting currents.. I also provide a novelform of intermeshed helical coil which cuts down both current andheating losses. The various features of the invention will be apparentfrom the following specification when read in connection with theaccompanying drawings and novel characteristics of the invention will bepointed out with particularity in the appended claims. ln thedrawings--- Fig. 1 is-a perspective view of a reactor embodying myinvention;

Fig. 2 is a vertical longitudinal section through the reactor;

Fig. 3 isa horizontal section on line 3-3 of Fig: 2;

Fig. 4 is a detail perspective view illustrating a portion of thewinding supporting structure of the reactor with the winding omitted;

Fig. 5 is a perspective of certain parts Shown in Fig. 4; 7

Fig. G is an enlarged vertical section illusti-ating details ofconstruction.

Referring in detail to the drawings, numerals 10 represent a series ofinsulators which rest on a floor or suitable foundation and formsupports for the bottom end head 12 ofthe reactor. This head mayconveniently be made of concrete or other moldable material and ispreferably provided with a central opening .14 to permit the circulationof air. ./in upper head 16 which is preferably a duplicate of the head12 is also provided, this beingformed with -a central opening 18, bothheads being provided with radialarms 2O leaving open spaces 22 for thecirculation of air. lt is to be understood, however, openings 22 may beomitted if desired as thetype of winding can be cooled sufficientlywithout these openings,

the chief reason for using such openings being to reduce the weight ofthe structure. Heads 12 and 16 are supported in spaced relationship by aplurality of radially ar convience of description, the radial supportswill be indicated asa whole by reference letters a, t, c, etc., the termradial support being intended to include the several insulating boards24, 26, 28, 30 and 32. These boards are spaced apart from one another atthe bottom by spacer blocks 34 and at the top by similar spacer blocks36. The several boards and spacer blocks are secured together at the topand bottom by means of radial bolts 38, the heads of which are seatedwithin counterbores 42 and the nuts 44 of which preferably are seated onwashers 46 seated against the inner surfaces of theinner insulatingboards 24. lt is noted that the boards 24, 26, 28, and 30 may be said toform columns which rest on the lower head '12 and support the upper head16. The outer boards 32 of each radial support are longer than the innerboards as indicated clearly in Figs. 1, 4 and 6, the extremities of saidouter boards 32 being seated in radial slots 48 and 50 formedrespectively in the heads 12 and 16. Radial' bolts 52 and 54 passthrough suitable holes near the lower and upper ends respectively of theboards 32 and engage threads formed in suitable inserts 56 and 58 moldedor otherwise secured in the heads 12 and .16.

The bolts 52 and 54 bear against spring` washers 53 and 55 respectivelyso as'to allow fora certain ,relative movement between the windingsupports and the header due to expansion and contraction caused by theheating and cooling of the coil.

The spaces between the boards 24, 26, 28 and 3() of the various radialsupports a, c, cil-1 form slots arranged in a circular fashion as willbe understood for the accommodation of the reactor winding which isbuilt up in a novel manner so as to form a plurality of intermeshedhelical coils as will be apparent from the following.

ln assembling the reactorthe insulating boards 24, 26, 28, 30 and 32 ofeach of the radial supports a, b, c, etc.. are first bolted toill@ y.so

gether at the bottom by means of the respective radial bolts 38 and thelower bolt 52 of each radial support is secured so as to form what wemight term a skeleton winding support for receiving the reactor winding.

Adjacent the upper surface of the lower head 12 and secured to a numberot the-outer boards 32, I provide a terminal plate or connector 60. Asimilar lterminal plate 62 is provided adjacent the underside of theupper header 16.. These plates provide means for leading the current inat one end of the coil and taking it off at the other end of the coil.The reactance coil itself isbuilt up in a. novel manner so as tominimize both current and heating losses. These advantages aregained-because of thepeculiar arrangement of the various parts orconvolutions of the coil. The construction and arrangement ot the coilwill be best understood by describing the manner of winding the sameparticularly with reference to Figs. 3'

and 6. The coil illustrated by way of example consists of four pairs ofconductors indicated by numerals 1, 2, 3 and 4. The lower ends of thesecoils are bolted to the terminal plate 60 by suitable binding screws 64.The conductors are insulated to withstand the 4maximum potential thatwill exist between the turns ofrthe winding and the spacing between theadjacent boards, as determined by the'width of the spacerblocks 36, isjust sufficient to accommodate each pair of conductors with a `fairlysnug lit. In building up the coil, it has been found convenient to placethe lower head 12 on a turntable and then to lay up the pairs ofconductors while the table is slowly rotated. Coil number 1 is carriedfrom the binding post 64 of the terminal plate 60 through the slot 0between the boards 28 and 30 of the radial support b, then through theslot m between the boards 24 and 26 of the radial support c. Theconductor then follows around for practically one complete revolutionthrough the innermost slots m oit the radial supports c. (Z, e, f, g,7L. i, j, 7c., Z and a. This coil is then stepped outward to the radialslot Aa of the radial support lo.

The lower end of the coil 2 is secured to the lower terminal plate 60,passes through. the slot p out theradial support t), is then carried into the slot a of the support c, then carries around for practically acomplete. revolution to the slots n of supports al', e, f, g, fr, z', j,ic, Zand a, and for the beginning of the next turn it start-s from theslot 0 and `Ifollows this radial location from the radial support b allaround. The coil 3 similarly starts 'from the terminal plate 60 ispassed 'to the slot o oit the radial support c and in wound practicallyconcentric for one turn and starts its next revolution in one of theoutermost slots 77. Similarly, the coil 4 starts at the terminal plate60 and is placed Learners in the outermost slots p' of the radialsupports c, d, e, f, g, it, j, k, Z, a and is then brought inward forthe start of the next turn to the innermost slot m of the radial supcoil is built up to provide the required amount of reactance. Theconductors 1, 2, 3 and 4 are then secured to the upper terminal plate 62and fastened by the binding screws 64. The upper spacer blocks 36 arethen placed in position and secured by the radial bolts 38, thus rigidlyclamping the winding. The upper header 16 is then put in place, theupper ends of the upright boards 32 being accommodated in the slots 50and bolts 54 being screwed home to permanently tie the structuretogether as one rigid unit.

hile in thedrawings, I have indicated 'a reactor provided with twelveradial supports, and have shown a winding made up of four coilsconnected in multiple and supported in four slotsk formed in the radialsupports, it is to be understood that I am not limited thereto as thenumber of supports and the number of Vconductors'in multiple las well asthe size of each conductor may be varied at will depending on.

the total current that the winding has to carry. By having thetransportation occur at the completion of each turn of the separateconductors the most ellicient balancing effect is ensured, althoughobviously satisrespect to the winding that they do not add to thediameter oit the reactor. Since all the conductors adjacent to the boltsare at the same potential., the bolts need not be provided withinsulation. Such a construction reduces the size of my improved reactoras compared with designs where outside through-bolts (parallel to thewinding axis) are necessary for mechanical strength, which throughboltsmust be electrically insulated from. the coil to prevent a short circuitot the winding. li/ly improved winding support formed of relatively fewpieces of .teenies insulating boards of rectangular' .cross-sectionpermits ot a llexibility of design and materially cuts down the cost as.compared with reactors of other designs.

The improved winding formed of a plurality of intermeshed helical coilswhich have frequent transpositions provides multiple circuits ,whichhave the same average radius and, therefore, the same inductance whereeach circuit is wound with the same number of turns. rlhis form ofwinding insures equal current distribution between the several circuitsforming Jthe winding and brings current losses and heating to a minimum.Mechanical iiorces due to eX- pansion and contraction are taken care ofby allowing a relative movement to take place between the winding andits radial supports. Because of the peculiar connection between theheaders and the coil support, said headers are relieved of the forceswhich tend to expand the coil under short circuit conditions, thearrangement being such that' those forces are transferred to theconductors themselves. rllhis arrangement permits the use of headers ofcomparatively light' construction which need only be of suilicientstrength to support the weight of i the coil. f'

ln the drawings and throughout the description and in the claims aswell, l refer to radial supports et built up insulating material. lt is,ofcourse, to be understood that this term radial is to be interpretedbroadly and it isnot intended to limit me to support which is arrangedin a true rad al line with respect to the center or axis of the reactorbut intended to include any support which points toward a central partorn the reactor as it will be apparent that 'the winding .can'be builtup if desired about a series of supports so located that their projectedcenter lines lie tangent to a lsmall circle concentric with the axis ofthe reactor. f

While l have described with great particularity specic details ofconstruction, and the arrangement oit parts et the specific embodimentot the invention'illustrated, it is not lto be construed that l amlimited thereto as various modifications and substitution etVequivalents may be made, by those skilled in the art without departingfrom the invention as deined in 'the appended claims.

l. A reactor comprising end heads and a series of radial supportsbetween said heads, each radialsupport comprising a plurality oflongitudinal members spaced apart to receive separate convolutions otthe winding and said winding comprising a plurality otconductorsconnected in multiple and the separate convolutions of the winding beingso disposed that a given conductor lies the same radial distance fromthe central axis of the coil for a given turn and lies at'a diilerentradial distance for another' turn in a dil'erent plane.

2. A device ot the character described including an electric winding ofhelical coils connected in multiple, a plurality of longitudinal windingsupports, heads adjacent the-latter, said supports being connected to`the heads by means of bolts extending radial to the axis ot the winding.

3. A device of the character described including an electric winding ofhelical coils connected in multiple, top and bottom heads having slotsparallel to the axis of the winding and a plurality ot longitudinalwind-` ing supports certain of which are seated in said slots.

4. A device of the character described inluding an electric .winding ofhelical coils connected in multiple, longitudinal windmg supports.l atop and abottom head having peripheral slots wherein said windingsupports are held by means of radial bolts, and means arranged to permita movement to take place between the longitudinal winding supports andthe headers. A 5. A device of the character described including an'electric winding of helical coils connected in multiple7 a plurality oflongitudinalv windingsupports of insulating materiahsaid supports beingarranged in radial groupsv and held together by radially extendingbolts.

6. A reactor having end heads and a winding supporting structurecomprising a plurality of members between said heads; said members beingarranged in radially disposed groups and each group being securedtogether by radially extending` bolts, and the outer member of eachgroup being longer than its companions and being secured at least at oneend to one of said heads by a` transversely extending bolt.

7. A reactor comprising end heads having located between them a seriesof radial supports for the winding, each of said radial supportsincluding a plurality of longitudinal members of substantiallyrectangular cross-section with spacer blocks between them and havingtransversely extending bolts for holding them in assembled relaftionship.

8. A reactor comprising end heads formed with slots therein and awinding support comprising a multiplicity oflongitudinally extendingmembers most of which are located wholly between said heads and certainof which are longer and are secured in said slots.

9. A reactor winding of the character de. scribed comprising a number oflayers, each layer consisting -of concentric coils of dilerent radii,all lying in'substantially the same plane, each concentric coil ,of onelayer beizo i ing connected in series with a coil of a different radiusin an adjacent layer.

l0. A reactor of the character described including upper `and 4lowerheads spaced apart by radial supportsy each supportI cornprising aplurality of longitudinal members with spacersbetween them toaccommodate the Winding and the Winding comprising a number of layers ofconcentric coils of different diameter. the coilsH in eacli layer beingseparated by said longitudinal supportsIII the coils of a given diameterin one layer being connected with coils or a dinen ent diameter inanother layer.

1l. A reactor comprising end heads et insulating material, a plurality oradial. supports for the Winding, each oi said radial supportscomprising a plurality oi longitudinally extending members of insulatingmaterial secured together in spaced relation to accommodate the Winding,rnost or which are located Wholly between said heads.j and at least oneof which has at least one of its ends projecting beyond thecorresponding ends of the otiaers9 and ineans for securing rami rio.,neng-ias,

lWALLflGE Kill Iltis hereby certinedtliat error appears .in the printedspeeication of numbered patent requiring correction as follows: "r wordtransportationn7 read ronapos'on; and 'tn be read with 'thesecorrections therein tliatxtlie saine the case in the Patent @nice i r/HQ f. o

neueres eaclro said projecting ends of said meinbers olf the severalsupports to tlie liead ade iacenfJ thereto.

l2. fr reactor comprising` a Winding made upl of a plurality ofconductors connected in multiples each conductor leaving dierentportions tliereol3 coiled concentrically to the vairis of the Winding;at different radial disliare hereunto A@aianted etober l a to abovetlieJ snould age 29 lines 574 and lilo? at the said. Pate,

may contorni to tlee les,

